Hi, mike- I’m glad to see your reply on this thread…I’ve read your sr log at the Pete Coleman site, and I am very impressed! I’ll be using your sr log for reference, and I hope you don’t mind if I consult you from time to time during my adventure? Did you really use the kit blocks, deadeyes, and rigging line? Your tissue sails are awesome! Again, very very well done! Do you also have a wip for your victory over there? I wholeheartedly agree with your philosophy of building, especially with a kit such as this… David
Hi David,
I wouldn’t mind at all helping out when I can and yes I did use the kit supplied blocks and deadeyes. Regarding the thread, I did start out using some of it for the canons and quickly realized it was junk so I purchased Coats and Clark linen thread for the remainder of the build.
As for my Victory wip, it’s in the Victory modellers diary under Michael’s Victory and I appreciate you taking the time to look, also I’ll be following your build when the times come.
Michael
Mine is under Bill’s Victory
Thanks, Michael!
I’ll be sure and look over your (and yours, Bill!) WIPs over at Pete C…
Micheal,
I too have seen and loved your SR and Victory builds over at Pete C’s. I first saw it a few years back and convinced me to get the SR although I have yet to build it. I wanted to get my chops back up before I tackled it.
GM,
I’ll have to pop back over to Pete C’s tonight and check out your Victory build!
Bash Monkey,
If I ever get through a good portion of my stash I thought building the 1/150 five masted Preussen.
Steve
I went through and read both of them…dang! Incredible stuff!
GM, you continue to impress…
Michael, one thing I noticed is that, while both of them are terrific builds, you definitely are going further into mods with your Victory, as compared to your Soleil Royal (again, both very impressive!)…
I’m inspired!
David, I’m on my second Royal and about 2/3 of the way completed but for the past year or so I’ve been involved in Group Builds and get to it in pieces. I posted on this forum a few months back and included some pics but it seems the rest of the year is already tied up. My plan is to get to her sometime in late fall. I can tell you the problem I see with me is that I get fatigued with the repetition of the many guns, rigging etc so I take it in stages that way I stay fresh. When I get back to it I’ll finish it as a WIP. These are very difficult builds and I think you can get over your head especially with the rigging. Everybody thats ever built one knows it takes skill and patience or you’ll walk away from it. I though long and hard about building the second one and my main reason was that I gave away my first and I wanted one for the house. They’re really a beautiful ship especially in 1/100.
Terry
Thanks David. I was just getting back into ship modeling when I started the SR and yes the mods to Victory are extensive and now that I’m at the rigging stage hopefully things will move along and I can complete her soon so I can start my next project.
Michael
Here’s an interesting new twist to the topic…
Does anyone who’s built a SR or a Victory have any regrets, in terms of things they would have DONE or NOT DONE? For example, does anyone wish they’d have made more modifications, or substituted for after-market parts, or maybe made such changes and felt it was unsuccessful? One obvious possibility would be something like detailing parts that are unseen on the finished model (cannons, interior cabins?)…
JTilley, if you’re still following this thread, my guess would be that you regret opening the box to begin with!! laughoutloud
I don’t wish to re-open the can of worms on how terribly anyone regards the kit …
…and I say that with the utmost respect and tongue-in-cheek irreverence! (I know sarcasm can be lost in the translation of typed messages!)
Dave
Sure- On Victory, I’ve hit a significant stalling point which is how to represent the visible decks. These include the weather decks and the visible central area of the upper gun deck visible through the boat beams.
The pluses of the kit are that the gun decks are in two halfs split stem-to-stern, in order to get them down into the wider parts of the hull.
The minuses- overdone grain, recessed pitch joints, incorrect plank butt pattern.
I painted the lowest two a warm grey which looks fine as there’s not much to see through the gun ports.
I first tried to replace the upper deck with a single large piece of styrene (a for-rent sign) that I was going to mask and paint planks onto. Someone creative may want to try that with a digital printer. I quickly gave up.
My next idea was to buy prescribed basswood and scribe in the plank butts. Maybe a little better, but then you get the monotony of a single piece of wood.
It was suggested that laying up the deck with scale planks over the plastic works. My hesitations were that it would raise the guns up too high in their ports, that it would bury the hatch and grating coamings somewhat, and that it would be very hard to do.
But recently I tried just that technique on my WIP yacht America. I put a little effort into setting recessed deck supports into the hull to keep the deck level where it belongs. That actually was really a chore on America because Revell has a continuous waterway channel cast onto the inside of the bulwark, plus a bunch of over grained stanchions and horizontal planks. It all had to go.
On Victory however, it’s a lot easier. Because the deck is split and has no rigidity, there are a whole bunch of little plastic beams that get glued in.
Another story there- Heller famously got the numbering wrong in the illustrations and it’s a nightmare. But I replaced them all with square brass tubing that made the hull much more rigid, AND I was able to camber them.
So setting those low, installing the plastic deck with all of the coamings removed, and planking it will be the way to go. That way I can have a king plank, too.
Which type of glue to use is a little bit of a trial. I used CA on the yacht, which allowed me to work fast. But inevitably a little gets up on the top, and it doesn’t take stain so the little guys were pressed to “sand” the decks. But laying the planks is downright FUN! Rather than precut the planks, I trace the beam locations onto the base layer, lay down a strip and “chop” it in place with a very sharp razor blade.
Well Dave, in retrospect my regrets regarding the SR go further back than opening the box. I wish I hadn’t bought the thing. A local hobby dealer offered me one for $75.00 (probably what it cost him) - a huge amount for a grad student, but the normal retail price would have been out of the question.
What model a modeler decides to take on is, of course, none of my business. But Dave, I have to say that I really think you’d be happier going in another direction. In the years that it would take you to finish the SR, you could build half a dozen or more beautiful, genuine scale models for all of us to enjoy. (I’ll bet you could do La Reale in six months or so - and I, for one, would love to see what your highly personal style and approach could do with it.) Or any of half a dozen other subjects. (Have you ever thought about a Revell Constitution? It’s certainly a better kit than the SR, and in some ways better than the Heller Victory.)
But the decision, of course, is yours,
GM, thanks for the detailed notes…that’s good stuff to know.
John, I get it. 
I do have a La Reale, and I also have a big Connie and a Cutty Sark…truthfully, I’ve been thinking that I may never build the big Revell kits, they’re just not really my style (neither is the Heller Victory, for that matter, but for a price tag of 20 bucks, I couldn’t pass it up)…however, there’s “many a slip 'twixt a cup and a lip”, and you never know what may happen. I’m sure in time I’ll build them all, and achieve my own appraisal of each.
More and more, I am tempted to open the box to the La Reale again and have a closer look. But make no mistake, I will build a Soleil Royal, and I want to believe it’ll be fun…
Remember, I’m not what you would call a serious scale modeler.
I built the la Reale a year or two ago, and now have a problem about what to do with it! It is huge, and I built it with the oars deployed. As a result it is by far the widest ship I have. It will not fit on a shelf nor in any display case I have. I am looking for some place local to donate it 
Looks beautiful, though. I pitched the styrene sails and made furled cloth ones. The kit was close to drawings and fancy models I have found images of, and needed only minor corrections to the bow area.
Interesting, Don…
What are the dimensions of the La Reale when complete?
Also, what option would one have for building it without the oars deployed? Can they be stowed on deck? And how wide would the model be in that case?
By the way, have you posted any pics of it on the forum? Seems like I remember seeing it…
Uh…Dave,…I don’t know quite how to break this to you, but in the time you’ve been taking part in this forum you’ve morphed into a serious scale modeler - in spite of yourself. And a mighty fine one at that.
Wait, what?!? Dang it…I was afraid that might happen!!
Thanks for the compliment, John…
Though I would characterize a serious scale modeler as someone who scratchbuilds a Hancock. I’m mostly an OOB modeler, who likes to add a few features here and there. It’s true, I care a little about certain details, but I still don’t give a hoot about things like deck camber, waterline height, or topmast length…BUT, I think the oft-mentioned rigging peculiarities of the Big Heller kits would get my goat somewhat…so I guess there are some aspects of authenticity that I feel are important.
Look, I’m the same guy who built the Black Swan…and LOVED it! Despite the capstan mainmast!
haha
Seriously, though…it’s all in fun, and someday when I do build my SR, I hope I don’t have to repel an onslaught of naysayers and criticism…
But first: The Imai Golden Hind awaits!
Good Times!
Dave
Dave…the LR is a period ship, right up your alley…and no matter what is said about it…I firmly believe you will make it your own and that most satisfactorly.
I recently perchased a 1/96 Sea Witch and (Very rare) Swordfish…to be added to my Large scale clipper fleet. They too have some issues…but some mods and some license…and I will be like a kid in a candy shop (As it should be).
Rob
A few random thoughts…
A serious builder is not defined as someone who sharpens their own exacto blades. A serious modeler is one who takes their builds seriously, IMO but you coined the term.
All of the serious modelers I know freely make the best of what’s available. If it’s plastic castings, mixed with carved wood, mixed with solder from Radio Shack; so be it. An OOB build can be a serious build indeed, as I think the Reale certainly demonstrates. Or the big Revell frigate.
When you say Dave that you don’t care about deck camber or topmast length, Dave, I frankly sort of smile because I don’t believe you entirely. Yes, to quote Clint; “A man has to know his limitations”, but the business of model building is really to stretch those limits. I’ll be the first to admit that I build entirely to impress myself.
John has pointed out, and I certainly agree from experience, that with a really big build as is contemplated here, by the time you get to the end you wish you could go back to the beginning and start over. With an airplane model, you can throw it away without too much remorse. A big ship, not so easy.
You have a great eye, just listen to your heart while you build. If it doesn’t seem right, walk away, come back and do what you think is best.
Very well put GM.
I heartily concur w/ your perspective. The fact that Dave considers the camber, what paints to use, or any other details, and then deciding what to do about it, if anything, is definitely the mark of a serious builder. Besides which, if you are not a serious modeler, you probably are not someone monitoring or posting in this forum. Never once have I had anything but appreciation for anyone’s work here, no matter what medium, to what lengths, or direction they may have taken it to. I love the diversity, it continues to teach and enrich me.
Rob- Good to hear from you! Haven’t seen any build updates in a while…
You’re right about the LR being right up my alley (thanks again for the kit!), and it’s beginning to seem likely that it will surpass the SR and the Vic in the queue for my upcoming big builds…after all, if I’m going to drive myself crazy with the SR, I might as well get all the “fun” builds done first! haha
Also, you must be talking about the Lindberg Sea Witch?? I wondered if you would do that one, since you like clippers so much…please let us know how you like the kit, compared to the Revell stuff…I’ve never built a Lindberg model…
GM and Arnie- eloquent posts, and wise words from you both. Yes, stretching one’s limits is a huge part of modeling…I always try to add something new to my arsenal of skills whenever I build a kit (I’m about to learn how to make chainplates!)…and it’s certainly true that, while developing skills, the time spent on a kit is long enough that the quality of work at the beginning may seem inferior to the quality at the end, and I’ve wished before that I “knew then what I know now”…I guess that’s just the nature of hobbying! That sentence was really wordy. Dang.
Anyway, that being said, I can’t speak to the definition of the term Serious Scale Modeler, it was coined by someone else…I guess my inferred definition of it was rather vague, but had the distinct connotation of “pursuing authenticity and scale as high priority”, which is not a big deal to me…I do take my modeling seriously, but I’m not convinced that makes me a Serious Scale Modeler, whatever that may be?
By the way, I really do like the sense of community on this forum…I feel like many of us are good friends, and I’m grateful to have all of your input! You all say nice things about my work, but the truth is that YOU have all amazed my with your results! I’ve never been more happy to be the new guy…
Rock on!